John has the magic touch
‘John Harkin pretty much trained me as well as my dog Meg. He made the process fun and gave me the confidence to build a strong relationship with her. So many people have remarked on how obedient and socialised she now is! I tell all my friends about John’s magic touch every chance I get.’
Barbara J C
Your calm and practical approach was so reassuring
Border Collie x Labrador Puppy Male 13 weeks
Hi John
I would like to say a huge thank you for yesterday. Your calm and practical approach was so reassuring and just what we needed at this early stage. You were amazing with all of us, particularly our children Tom and Audrey and we have all taken your advice on board. We have had the most amazing calm puppy and calm family this morning. Dasher slept peacefully in his new kennel last night and had an hour on his trampoline bed this morning with no biting!
Many thanks , Kind regards
Jayne
Jayne S - Hampton
Money well spent
‘Gus no longer barks at the door and is now so much easier to walk. Money well spent. Thank you!’
Anne M, Kooyong
An absolute miracle
‘John accomplished an absolute miracle. My little princess is now a true princess. Thank you, thank you, thank you – and bless you from the bottom of my heart.’
Tabitha O, Kew
John literally changed my life overnight
Billy & Lola Labradoodles Male & Female 6 & 7 years
Just wanted to say thanks to John , he literally changed my life overnight !! The dogs are perfect now !!
Jane
Jane S - Kew
Your expertise was invaluable
‘Thank you so much for teaching us to be better masters! As I suspected, the root problem didn’t lie with our Border Collies Sidney and Harry – they lay with our behaviours as owners. Your time and expertise were invaluable.’
Louise V, Pakenham
The future looks bright
‘My heart had been heavy since Reuben’s ‘bite situation’. But John has empowered me with the confidence and knowledge to manage his behaviour on an ongoing basis. The future looks bright as I start my new relationship with Rueben. We are going to be a neat team as we strut our stuff!’
Marleene H, Aberfeldie
John is fantastic with children
‘John was fantastic with my nine-year-old daughter. She’s so much more confident with our puppy Stanley, and now understands why it’s important to follow our house rules (and give Stanley lots of cuddles!). What’s more, Stanley’s behaviour has improved in leaps and bounds in just 24 hours.’
Sam W, Toorak
The best investment we could have made
John came to our house in Mornington to train our 8 & 9 year old Staffies We were convinced that they were beyond help & we would be stuck with dogs that pull on leads, were aggressive towards other dogs, barked at people walking past… the list goes on. Within the time spent with our dogs, John had them walking next to us on the lead (WITHOUT pulling), sitting at each street corner & waiting to be invited onto the street, not being fussed if another dog walked past & NO barking at the fence when people walked past our house. We cannot recommend John highly enough, we were blown away by not only his ability, but also the knowledge & insight that he gave us about how to enjoy our dogs. We can now have breakfast at a cafe with our dogs at our feet, all the while another dog sitting next to us, walk them with no stress & be confident that they aren’t barking whilst we are at work. By far the best investment we could have made. Thanks John!! Tuzz & Rhys 🙂
Tuzz & Rhys M, Mornington
We learnt so much from John
Jenny R – St Helena
Daisy Golden Retriever 6 years
Today’s session with John was fantastic! We learnt so much from him. Daisy did all the things that we were worried about so John could see exactly what the problem was. We will put a lot of work into her over the next couple of weeks & I will report back to you.
Daisy is such a great dog but has a stubborn streak which we are going to work on. In one session she was listening & being obedient so couldn’t be happier.
Kind Regards Jenny
Jenny - St Helena
Cooper is a whole new dog
‘After our 90 minute consultation with John, Cooper became a whole new dog. He no longer ‘sooks’, he walks well on lead – and best of all, he no longer wakes us up at 3am!’
Julie G, Rowville
After just one session
‘After just one session, my eight-month-old Border Collie Lucy no longer barks excessively. And I’m now able to take her on walks without her trying to herd cars. Thank you!’
Barbara B, Mont Albert North
Wish we had found you earlier
‘Our 20-month-old yellow Lab Teddy became aggressive towards other dogs, barking furiously and acting like he would attack them. We tried eight sessions with another dog trainer but saw no improvement whatsoever. But John solved the issue in just one session! We wish we had found you earlier!’
Gill & Owen M, South Yarra
John is a miracle worker
‘Our five-month-old Labradoodle no longer jumps on our children or steals their toys. In fact all our walks are now calm and pleasant. Our puppy has become a member of our family – he really does come with us everywhere! John is a miracle worker.’
Fiona & Daniel K, Croydon North
A life-changing two hours
‘The two hours we had with John were the most enlightening and educational we’ve ever had. They were absolutely life-changing. We are so happy to feel in control of our house and lives. And now we can really enjoy our pets.’
Ana, Gary, Patrik, Lara and Filomena
John revolutionised our lives
‘It’s hard to put into words how amazing John is. He really did revolutionise our lives. And now we are very happy to have a relaxed dog that walks without barking at others.’
Gill & Owen M, South Yarra
She now behaves perfectly
‘Within a couple of minutes of meeting our Labrador Milly, John was able to identify why she had been misbehaving. She now behaves perfectly.’
Helena H, Eltham
Results were instant
‘The arrival of our new puppy was a very exciting time but the challenges quickly became apparent. However, John’s visit was all we needed to help us set boundaries for our puppy – and the results were instant. After just one week of reinforcement, our puppy is now toilet trained and extremely well-behaved.’
Mike N, Warranwood
John is fabulous
‘Our new puppy Ted was excellent on his walk this morning! John is a fabulous character and we can’t thank him enough.’
Jo W, Yarraville
Behaves perfectly with other dogs
‘A very big thank you for all you have done for us. Over the Christmas break we were at the beach with Ari and Ines – and they both behaved perfectly with other dogs. We are continually amazed with the dramatic changes in both of them.’
Martha, George and Elly, Ivanhoe
We came back to John after 12 years
‘When we adopted our dog Aus 12 years ago, John’s advice was invaluable. We recently reached out to him again for help with our new Labradoodle puppy. John’s approach was just as effective and fun as it was 12 years ago!’
Paula C, Kew
Wonderfully patient with our rescue dog
‘Our rescue cattle dog Abbey initially came to us with lots of love to give and attitude. Even though we’ve been dog owners for a long time, John’s expertise and friendly no-fuss approach were invaluable. Thank you for being so wonderfully patient with our rescue dog – and also for ‘rescuing’ us!’
Dr M Williams, Canterbury
We were so impressed with your demeanor, knowledge, expertise
Georgie Pomeranian 13 weeks
Thank you so much John. We were so impressed with your demeanor, knowledge, expertise and personable nature. Dad and I feel so relieved that we feel we can manage Georgie from today and moving forward. The best thing is that we can believe we can actually keep her, we love her to bits but we were questioning our ability to manage.
Most appreciative John.
Al
Alison & Maurice B - Langwarrin
Now a model canine citizen
‘We had so much fun and learnt heaps with John. His methods really do work! When we took Vinnie out yesterday, he stopped at each crossing we came to – even when we were on the other side of the road. Vinnie is now a model canine citizen.’
Michael & Kelly S, Croydon
John absolutely transformed my dog
I first met John 10 years ago when my Golden retriever, Toby, was 12 weeks old. I told him that, although I had raised and trained 3 previous dogs ( a Corgi and 2 Golden Retrievers) it had been 15 years since the previous Golden was a puppy and, as a new and furthermore, now older, mother I lacked confidence and felt I needed some guidance.
I shall never forget the couple of hours we spent with Toby that day. We walked him to the nearby train station, stood on the platform and watched trains go by, walked amongst throngs of schoolgirls on the footpath as they headed towards the station, took him to a coffee shop, crossed busy roads, watched noisy trucks pass by, crossed pedestrian crossings – all with John’s firm guidance and expertise.
This is a man who really knows dogs and, I suspect, also has considerable insight into owner’s personalities!
My interaction with John resulted in a placid, well trained and incredibly loveable dog and I am deeply grateful to him.
Annette C, Armadale
Learnt a great deal
‘My sincerest thanks for your time with Milly and me today. I learnt a great deal and look forward to Milly behaving herself!’
Lynne G, Hurstbridge
We are completely amazed and shocked by the instant, wonderful transformation
Xena Labrador 17 months
Good afternoon Robyn,
Chris and I want to say a huge “thank you” to John and yourself. Firstly for yourself taking the time to speak with me in depth last week and make me feel comfortable we were making the right decision.
We are completely amazed and shocked by the instant, wonderful transformation. When I have a moment I will be sure to add a review on your website.
We feel like we now have an amazing life with her in front of us.
John is truly one of a kind and we are forever grateful.
Take Care
Kind Regards
Terri & Chris T - Oakleigh
I would definitely recommend John
We had John come to train little Alfie a feisty Mini Schnauzer and we were amazed with the results. He was able to quickly identify the dogs nature and the issues that required attention. Methods were clear and very practical and easy for the family to follow, even down to the appropriate treats & toys. I think that one of the most valuable parts of the training was that John trained the whole family on how to provide consistent and clear direction to Alfie. This meant that after the training we were all capable and could maintain consistent approach to the training. Our 2 girls felt very comfortable with John’s coaching and enjoyed the training. We are now able to enjoy our little pooch and he is much happier also, I would definitely recommend John.
Craig G - Parkdale
Lola has completely transformed
‘Our 15-week-old American Staffordshire Lola used to be a little terror. She would pull so hard on her lead that she choked herself – and refused to let go of socks, shoes and whatever else she could find. And when we tried to play with her, she would bite the entire time. But since John’s help, Lola has completely transformed. She walks on her lead like a dream, no longer jumps on the couch and hasn’t bitten us once!’
Carly M, Carrum
Truly astounding improvements
‘Ted’s confidence has grown and he is no longer scared of every new human or loud sound. We’re both still learning but his improvements have been truly astounding. Ted is now a very happy boy!’
Conor (and Ted), Princess Hill
Walking her is now a pleasure!
John, I would like to thank you for the time you spent with us. It made the difference between just having Kora because I had to and appreciating just what a beautiful dog she is. Walking her is now a pleasure and she is even trying so hard not to jump on Grandma. You can actually see her working out what it is that will please us. I can see now how intelligent she is and how quickly she responds. I can’t thank you enough as at this hard time of grieving, you have taken one worry away.
Thank you so much again.Virginia R, Seaford
An absolute marvel
‘We are so grateful for John’s expertise. Our home is now calm and peaceful – we can even leave doors open! Our puppies are quickly adapting to the new rules. John is an absolute marvel.’
Jillian & Les P, Malvern East